Wisconsin Reports Equine WNV and EEE

Wisconsin has reported additional cases of Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) and equine West Nile virus (WNV) in the state.

Wisconsin's 24th EEE Case

The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection has confirmed a case of Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) in Marathon County. An unvaccinated 17-year-old Appaloosa cross mare went down on October 20. The attending veterinarian saw the mare on that day. He reported that she had been high-stepping and star-gazing prior to recumbency. In recumbency, he reported that she was twitching and acting delirious. The veterinarian sampled and treated her with anti-inflammatories and steroids. He said she got up and was showing 21neurologic signs, but is recovering.

This is the 24th case of EEE reported in Wisconsin in 2017.

22nd Equine WNV Case in Wisconsin

The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection has confirmed a case of equine West Nile virus (WNV) in a 7-year-old unvaccinated Quarter Horse mare from Clark County. She showed minor neurologic signs on October (lip droop, slight incoordination). She went down on October 22, but got back up. On October 23, she went down again and a local veterinarian was called. He sampled and treated her, but she died a couple of days later. NVSL performed the laboratory diagnostic tests.

This is the 22nd case of equine WNV reported in Wisconsin in 2017.

The Equine Disease Communication Center (EDCC) works to protect horses and the horse industry from the threat of infectious diseases in North America. The communication system is designed to seek and report real time information about disease outbreaks similar to how the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) alerts the human population about diseases in people.